Insect-trap



I J. S. HE LLING.

INSECT TRAP. v APPLICATION FILED AUG-2|, |920 Patented Feb. 22,1921.

, UNITED i STATES JOHN HELLING, OF VISALIA, CALIFORNIA.

INSECT-TRAP;

Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Feb. 22, 1921.

Application filed August 21, 1920. Serial No. 405,113.

To all 20 ham it may concern Be it known that I, JoHN S. HELLING, a citizen of the United States, residing at Visalia, in the county of Tulare and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Insect-Traps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mechanicaltraps for killing insects, and more particularly to power driven devices for swatting flies; and it consists in the novel construction and combination of the parts hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of a device for killing flies and other similar insects, constructed according to this invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same.

A casing 4: is provided for inclosing a suitable spring motor or'clockwork time mechanism for operating the, swatter. The

motor driving shaft 5 projects from the casing, and has a disk 6 secured 011-bit and provided with a crank-pin 7. The disk 6 is revolved in the direction of the arrow adjacent to it, by the spring 8 inside the casing. 7 A lever 9 is pivoted to the casing by a pin 10, and it has a longitudinal slot 12 in one end portion, which slot engages with the crank-pin 7. The other end portion of the lever is provided with a fly swatter 141 formed of a plate or sheet of any suitable light material, such as the woven wire used in making fly-screens for windows.

A catch 15 is pivoted to the casing below the lever 9, by a pin 16, and thecatch is preferably provided with a longitudinal slot 17 so that it may slide lengthwise on the pin 16 to a limited extent. The lever 9 is normally supported in an inclined position, as shown in Fig. 1, by means of a detent 18. which projects radially from the disk 6, and which bears against the lower end of the catch 15.

A spring 19 is secured between the lower end portion of the catch and the casing 4, so that the middle part of the slot 17 engages with the pin 16 when the detent is pressing against the end of the catch. The upper end portion of the catch is a little heavier than its lower end 'portion,'so that the lower end portion normally rests against the underside of the lever 9 adjacent to the crank-pin, being provided with a lateral projection 23.

A cam 20 is secured on a shaft 2]. which projects from the casing 4. This shaft 21 is revolved constantly by the time mechanism or clockwork 24 inside the casing, in the'direction of the arrow adjacent to the cam, and the time mechanism is arranged so that the cam will trip the catch 15 periodically, and preferably two or three times a minute. i

A flat plate 25 is arranged in the path of the swatter. Sugar or other approved bait, is placed on the plate 25, and the flies or other insects attracted by it are crushed against the plate by the swatter at each descent of the same. The swatter lever is operated suddenly, the disk being arranged to be moved for a whole revolution by the driving spring 8 before the detent engages again with the end'of the catch. The slot 17 slides a little over the pivot pin when the detent strikes the catch so that its upper end is projected into the path of the cam to V a predetermined extent, and the catch is thereby caused to work smoothly and with certainty. The spring 8 does not revolve the disk 6 and the crank-pin and operate the lever ,9 when the parts are in the positions shown, because the upward pressure of the crank-pin 7 on the part of the lever above the slot is not sufficient to disengage the detent 18 from the end of the lever 15. The weight of the upper end portion of the lever 15 presses its lower end and the part 23 upwardly into the angle between the detent 18 and the lever 9, and the spring-actuated crank-pin presses the detent hard against the end of the lever 15.

What I claim is:

1. The combination, with a supporting plate forthe bait, of a pivoted lever pro vided at one end with a swatter for striking the said plate, a spring-operated crank-pin engaging with the other end portion of the said lever, a detent projecting from the said lever, a pivoted catch which normally engages with the said lever and with its detent, and a time-controlled carnwhich retracts the catchat predetermined intervals.

2. The combination, with a plate for the bait, of a pivoted lever provided at one end portion with a swatter for striking the plate and having a longitudinal slot in its other end portion, a disk provided with a crankpin which engages with the said slot, a spring for revolving the said disk, a catch normally preventing the lever from being operated, and time-controlled cam which operates the catch at predetermined intervals and permits the swatter to strike the plate and return to its raised position.

3. The combination, with a plate for the bait, of a pivoted lever provided with a swatter for striking the said plate, driving devices for oscillating the said lever, a pivoted catch provided with a slot which permits it to slide longitudinally, a detent projecting from the said disk and bearing against one end of the catch, a spring holding the catch in contact with the detent, and a time-controlled cam which engages with the other end of the catch at periodic intervals and releases the detent, thereby permitting the swatter to strike the plate and re turn to its original position.

In testimony whereof I have aflixecl my signature.

JOHN S. HELLING. 

